Just Know I'm Here
by Reidluver
Summary: Iva bit her lip in an attempt to fight the pain. She wasn't sure how she started, or even why she continued. All she knew was that this had to be the right way to deal with her problems. At least, until a certain young shinobi showed up.
1. Chapter 1: A Comfort

**Hello! This is sort of influenced by **cardcaptor eternity'**s stories It's too late to apologize and Konohamaru's Plea, and I just wanted to have a go at it myself. I will send you a chapter though** **for your most recent story **cardcaptor**! I promise!**

**Please enjoy!**

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Iva bit her lip in an attempt to fight the pain.

She could lose a few pounds.

_SCRATCH._

She shouldn't have dropped that plate while serving all those important visitors that her parents relied on for business.

_SCRATCH._

She made a fool of herself in front of Taku by saying something stupid.

_SCRATCH._

She remembered the look all those girls had given her as she walked by, the whispers that were directed at her.

_SCRATCH._

She was worthless.

_SCRAAAAATCH._

Who could care about a person like her?

_SCRRRRRAAAAAAAATCH._

Iva hissed and inspected her work.

Her entire left upper arm was covered with half-moon cuts that spread across horizontally across her shoulder, running over scars from the past, opening some, and creating new ones. Blood slowly drizzled down from some of the cuts, all mixing together and traveling down the length of her arm.

She stared, transfixed at all the blood she had drawn, oddly proud of herself for doing so well. Most times there would just be a red welt, but sometimes she did a good enough job to go deep enough to bleed.

Iva wasn't sure how she started, or even why she continued. She supposed it was somewhat like how some people would slit their wrists with something sharp like a knife, but those people were foolish and stupid. Many had died or been sent to the hospital for blood loss, and then everyone knew what they did, and the wounds were hard to hide. Her way was much more efficient.

By using her fingernails she was sure that she would never hurt herself enough that she would be in mortal danger, and it was just enough to be able to let out her frustration. Also, by doing it on her upper arms it could be easily hidden by sleeves, and no one would be the wiser.

She felt a certain type of joy whenever she dragged her nails across her flesh, breaking it apart and feeling the pain snake through her arm. She was able to vent out her anger at herself and others without hurting anyone. This also provided her with a way that she could punish herself, a way to punish herself for being stupid and worthless.

The pain that would linger for a few days after each scratch would serve as a constant reminder of her worthlessness and how she would always have to work to do things perfectly to avoid another scratching episode before the previous wounds were healed.

The days following each episode she would have to wear light and silky shirts, because any other material would irritate it too much and her whole upper arm would itch.

Satisfied with the day's work, she adjusted the rolled up sleeve to make sure it wouldn't fall down on her, and then grabbed a wet cloth from her bag before pressing it down firmly on the bleeding shoulder. She would alternate scratching sessions between shoulders, going from right to left, left to right, right to left. Now she was having less and less free, unaltered skin, but that didn't matter.

Suddenly, Iva heard a rustle of leaves and she hastily put the cloth back in her small bag and unrolled the sleeve, wincing as she did so, making sure the cuts were covered properly, praying that they wouldn't bleed onto her clothes.

"Hi," a blonde boy said cheerfully, his eyes curving upwards.

"Um, hi," she said weakly. No one had ever interrupted her scratching sessions. Iva had chosen a secluded place in the woods, away from the training grounds that the shinobi used and the park that the village children liked to play on. She would always lie and say she was going on a small walk, picking up some snacks on the way. Once she reached her special spot she would set down a blanket and make a picnic of sorts, as an alibi should anyone chance to come by. Then she would commence the scratching.

Now here was this boy interrupting her before the process was over, and not just any boy. It was the Uzumaki boy, the one that her parents told her to stay away from, the one whom everyone stared at without staring whenever he passed thorugh the village. No one had ever told her why, they just said he was bad news. Iva didn't really see what all the fuss was about.

Sure, she had heard the stories of all the pranks he had pulled, even seen a few herself, especially when he painted the Hokage's faces. She knew it was disrespectful, but one had to admit, he was quite the artist!

Iva figured it had to do with his pranksterish tendencies, and the fact that he had those peculiar "whiskers" on his face. People always seemed to hate and fear those who were different, she should know. She didn't act exactly like all the other girls, was more shy, and kept to herself most of the time. Being different was a curse.

The only question was, what was he doing here?

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto, what's yours?" he asked brightly, plopping down on the ground besides her, his orange jumpsuit looking oddly in place in the green shadows, the black "tails" of his Hitai-ate swaying in the wind along with the ends of his hair.

"Mikorou Iva," she answered, pasting on a fake smile, willing the boy to just leave and let her be alone.

Silence ensued for a few minutes as they both sat there awkwardly, the breeze lightly caressing their faces.

Suddenly Iva felt a hand on her shoulder and discovered that the boy was rolling up her sleeve!

"What are you doing?!" she shrieked as she slapped his hand away and stood up to run away. However, as she started to turn, the blonde boy appeared right in front of her.

"How—"

"Shinobi," he answered solemnly before reaching out for her sleeve again. Iva resisted by pulling away slightly, but he grasped her arm with his right hand and slowly rolled up the sleeve with his left hand.

Once the slightly bleeding, red mess was revealed, Iva stared at the ground, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment, unable to know what to say. She wanted to pull away, but there was no chance of being releashed from a shinobi grip.

"Why?"

Iva frowned at the tone of his voice and glanced up at him to notice there were tears in his eyes, a softness and hurt in his eyes that meant he had been through the same grief. She was embarrassed that he felt sorry for her! Why should he take pity on her?!

"Because," she said simply, her voice threatening to crack.

"You shouldn't do that," he said quietly.

"Really? Well, thanks for the advice," Iva said sarcastically, surprised by the bitterness in her tone.

"I mean it, doing that would only make it worse," he pressed, clearly wanting her to understand him.

"Well, what do you know about it?" she challenged, wrenching her arm away angrily.

The shinobi said nothing as he unzipped his orange jacket to reveal a tight black shirt and a unique necklace, before sliding the long sleeves to his elbows and displayed his bare shoulder since the shirt he wore had no sleeves.

"What? I don't see anything."

"Feel," the boy prodded, turning the right shoulder towards her. Iva raised an eyebrow but did as he said, and was shocked to feel the uneven skin, scars, and welts she knew too well.

"B—but why?"

"I used to do the same, it's just that my injuries heal faster and more efficiently than most," he grimaced as if it were something unpleasant.

"H—how could . . . " and then she remembered all the hateful glares some of the villagers would throw at his back when he passed, the way people would seem to spit his name whenver it had to be said.

He smiled weakly to try and lighten the mood and tied the jacket around his waist, then rubbed the back of his neck.

"I did it when I was younger because no one cared about me. Everyone hated me, and I didn't know why. I figured that there must have be something wrong with me, and since I couldn't find anything, I figured that I might as well make a reason. Hurting myself like that made the hatred more justified and gave me a reason to feel ashamed at myself. I couldn't be ashamed of something I did not know about."

"Then someone took the time to treat me normally, to tell me that I was special, and doing things like this is not right. Defacing yourself like this hurts you, and does nothing else. It doesn't make you feel better, and all it does is cause problems." He smiled again and then placed both hands above her injury, pausing for a second in concentration, and a green glow was emitted underneath.

Iva's eyes widened as she recognized the healing chakra flare. _How did he_—

After a minute or so had passed he stopped the chakra and let his hands drop, and Iva inspected the skin in amazement. The cuts were completely healed and were nothing but mere tiny scars!

"A medical kunoichi taught me some of the basics," he explained, that same, contagious smile pasted on his face.

Suddenly the shinobi found himself tightly enveloped in a hug from the girl, who was sobbing silently.

"A—arigato," she cried, burying her face into his chest. Naruto smiled softly and gently rubbed her back in an effort to calm her down.

Once she was finished they sat down and ate the picnic that Iva had brought, with Naruto listening to stories of her family after she had listened to all his tales of the missions he had gone on and the traning he had undertaken with Jiraiya.

"Bye, Naruto!" Iva called out happily, waving to him as she made her way home, which he returned before disappearing into the trees to go practice.

As she made her way back to her house, her heart lighter than it had ever been, she reflected over how she and Naruto promised to meet every so often and just talk, and especially about what he had told her once she was done.

_Just know I'm here._

* * *

**So, what do you think? I know that many would think of teen insecurities and the way they deal with them with topics such as suicide, anorexia, bulemia, slitting wrists, etc. but I wanted to take this a step further and bring out a side that no one really talks about.**

**I don't know for sure how many people out there do this, but one of my friends does. Whenever she is furious with herself, or feel depressed she digs her nails into her skin, and she has the scars to prove it. I am writing this to reach out to all others who do the same and let them know that they should stop. Our bodies are sacred gifts and should not be desecrated like this. Find a healthier way to vent out some feelings, like writing fanfics! :P**

**Anyway, this is just my attempt at trying to let others know that they aren't alone, and if you do scratch yourself like this, don't hesitate to send me a PM and just talk! I realize that it's something strange and you can't really go to a counselor for this kind of thing, since it's so weird. Or even if you do something else similar to this, please talk to me!**

**With today's media, teens are feeling more and more worthless, like they don't belong and they think that because they don't look a certain way or wear certain clothes or act a special way they are freaks. I encourage you all to realize that you are YOU, and no one else can. Be that incredibly special someone and be the best at it! You can always find someone who is willing to listen to you, and there is always someone who will care about you.**

**Oh, and we can't forget our favorite Naruto! I couldn't think of a better person to play this role other than him, and we've all got to admit that he is an amazing person, and this is my way as a sort of tribute to the kind of person he is. I luv him so much!**


	2. Chapter 2: Payback

**Hello everyone! I know some of you may be surprised to see that there is another chapter even when though this was originally put out as complete. **Uzumaki Naruko14** expressed that they wanted more to the story, and at first I was slightly stumped as what to do, but then after some guidance by **Uzumaki Naruko14** for some ideas, I finally came up with this idea!**

**So, I guess I have to thank some reviewers, ne? **Uzumaki Naruko14, WootMannen, cardcaptor eternity, Meira Evenstar, **and **Rambler Kaolin**, you guys rock my socks!**

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"Iva! I need your help in the front!" her father yelled into the house, interrupting her in her daydreaming.

"Okay!" she yelled back, pushing herself off her futon, eager to help. Ever since Naruto had convinced her not to hurt herself anymore, the young girl had been doing quite an excellent job at not doing it again. Now that she knew someone else cared, it strengthened her willpower every time she felt the urge to punish herself. Iva could proudly say that she hadn't scratched herself since.

"Could you just start arranging those vegetables over there while I work on the fruit?" her father asked, somewhat distracted by the work he was currently engaged in.

"Sure." Iva understood why here father was so rushed; they were having contractors coming over at the end of the day to make sure everything was running smoothly with their business. It was a big deal for both her parents.

As Iva set about fixing the vegetables and making sure they looked perfect, a loud, "Sakura-chan!" broke her concentration and she looked up to find the source of the noise.

The girl smirked as she saw Naruto with who she could only guess were his teammates. He was rubbing the side of his head painfully, which probably had something to do with the pink haired kunoichi next to him (Sakura was it?). There was also a pale skinned boy (at least she thought he was a boy) with a peculiar black outfit next to the Sakura girl and he was smiling happily with what appeared to be a fake smile. What caused Iva's eyes to widen was the fact that Hatake Kakashi, the famous Copy-Nin, was walking in front of them, talking to another jounin happily in front of the trio. She didn't know the other jounin, but she could tell he was very powerful as well, and somehow he looked familiar, but she couldn't place where she had seen him before.

At any rate, she was happy to see that Naruto had such nice teammates (even though one was looking slightly infuriated at him for the moment, she wondered what his loud mouth had gotten him into this time) but then her smile vanished as she realized he was on a collision course for her father's fruit stand. Sakura was too busy fuming to notice, while the other boy was smiling, and the two jounin were in front of Naruto, so there was no way they could see it. Also, her father was busy talking to her mother, who was holding a clipboard of everything they had to accomplish before the contractors came. There was nothing she could do.

And so, there was a definite crash as Naruto collided with the cart and Iva shut her eyes in fear of what would happen next, but slowly opened them when she heard her father shout, "Teme! How could you be so careless?!"

Naruto was lying in the dirt, appalled by what had happened, the apology evident in his eyes but he was too afraid to speak. Her father was out of harm's way and furious, her mother with an equally angry expression but slightly startled by what had occured. What drew her attention most was the fact that while there were a few apples and oranges on the ground, soiled and no longer good enough to sell, there was a white tiger of some sorts holding the stand up, keeping the rest of the fruit from falling.

The blonde muttered an apology then pushed himself off the ground, and to Iva's surprise the white beast collapsed in a puddle of ink once the cart was fixed, and Naruto turned to the boy and said, "Arigato, Sai."

"Hey! I'm talking to you!" Iva's father growled. "You just ruined some of my produce, something that can't be replaced—"

"Urusei!" the kunoichi growled, just as angrily. "He said he was sorry!"

"And there's not that much harm done," the boy addressed as Sai reminded them, his smile showing up on his face again in a attempt to calm the man down. "There are only a few that have fallen—"

"I don't care!" Iva was astonished at her father's anger. She understood that he was stressed from having to please the contractors, but Sai was right, he _had_ saved the greater portion of the fruit from falling. They could just arrange the fruits a little better so the few that were on the ground wouldn't be too greatly missed. The way he was acting was shameful!

To her surprise, Iva noticed that the whole street was watching, many with angry faces and snarls that matched her father's, even her own _mother_ seemed to look at the poor boy in the utmost contempt. Iva was somewhat consoled by the fact that Sai and Sakura were trying to defend Naruto, and Kakashi and the other jounin started to make their way over, and by their expressions they were not happy.

"I'm deeply sorry," Naruto mumbled again, staring at the ground, yet he stood rigidly as if bracing himself for something.

"Sorry won't cut it! You'll pay for that demon!" Time seemed to slow down as Iva watched her father draw back his arm, and suddenly she knew exactly what to do, and her body took action with speed she did not know she possessed.

**SMACK!**

There was complete silence in the street as Iva sprawled on the ground from the impact of her father's punch. She had jumped in front of Naruto and held her hands out as if to shield him, and her father's fist collided with her left jaw with such impact that Iva wondered vaguely if it would break as she fell. She coughed from the dust cloud that had formed when she fell and spit out some blood that had collected in her mouth. Wiping it away and prodding her jaw, Iva pushed herself off the ground and faced her father who was more shocked than she had ever seen him in her life.

After making contact with her father's widened eyes to give him the message, Iva moved on to her mother who was equally shocked and confused, unsure of what to think.

Iva sniffed and then grabbed Naruto's arm (who was staring at her with wider eyes than her father) and led him away, saying loudly, "Come on, Naruto." The young girl ignored all the stares from the villagers she passed, as well as the two jounin, instead focusing on getting away from the street as fast as she could.

* * *

"Just sit still, this will hurt a little," Sakura said apologetically as she carefully lifted Iva's chin and tried to see what the damage was.

"ITAI!!" Iva moaned as her jaw exploded with pain.

"It's just a little sore, nothing to worry about," the kunoichi assured her happily. Iva had to disagree, _it hurt a lot!_

"I can lessen the pain a little, if you'd like," she continued helpfully, which Iva nodded vigorously.

They had decided to take refuge at Ichiraku's Ramen Bar. Sakura was currently trying to help her swollen jaw. Naruto had been silent the whole way, as well as his two friends. Finally Kakashi spoke and suggested half-heartedly that they go to Ichiraku's.

As of right now Naruto was sitting next to Iva's left, his head resting in his folded arms that he had draped on the counter, while Sai sat on the other side of Sakura, followed by Kakashi and the other jounin, who she discovered later was named Yamato.

"Why did you do that?" Naruto asked slowly, as if he were afraid of her answer.

"Because you didn't deserve it," Iva stated matter of factly as Sakura started healing her jaw with the familiar green chakra glow.

"But neither did you," Sakura reminded her.

Iva shrugged. "I could see that Naruto wasn't going to move, and if I were faster I would have tackled him to the floor, but alas I am not a shinobi," she chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

"Aha!" Sai exclaimed, slamming a fist into his palm. Every stared at him in confusion, then he glanced at Iva with his fake smile. "It was self-sacrifice!"

Iva was confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Self-sacrifice, where you put yourself in harm's way to impress another person." Here he looked thoughtful, bringing his right hand up to his chin. "But from the book I read it said that usually only men did it to impress women." He paused again and stared at Iva. "Are you in love with Naruto?"

"No!" Iva exclaimed incredulously. "What are you talking about?"

"Just ignore that," Sakura whispered. "He is trying to learn about emotions through books and has a few issues to sort out." Iva frowned as raised her eyebrow, wondering what the story was behind the strange boy, but decided it was none of her business and she probably wouldn't understand anyway.

"Seriously, why did you do it?" Naruto pressed, eager to know the answer. Once Sakura finished, Iva sighed then realized everyone was wanting to know the answer as well.

"It's just that . . . it's my way of thanking you for all you've done for me," she said quietly, flashing him a small smile. "What's wrong with sticking up for a friend?" Naruto was surprised for a moment then grinned in the only way he could.

"So who was that guy anyway?" Sakura wondered aloud then started cracking her knuckles. "Because I think I should go pay him a visit—"

"My father," Iva cringed as she stared at her hands. There was an awkward silence as everyone wondered what to say next.

"I've never seen him act like that before though," she said in defense of her father. "But what confuses me is why everyone seems to act like that around you Naruto! Did you do something that I don't know about, or—"

"Let's just say that this is a matter best discussed elsewhere, and not an easy one at that," Kakashi interjected. "Besides, all that matters is that you are all right and that we are all grateful for what you have done."

"Just the fact that you were willing to stand up for Naruto is enough," Yamato said brightly, trying to change the subject and lighten the situation.

"Yeah! Join the club," Sakura chuckled, holding her hand out to Iva, who grinned and shook it.

"We're in a club?" Sai asked, genuinely confused, causing everyone to erupt in laughter at his expense.

Iva had never had this much fun in her life! Naruto's team was incredibly entertaining, and it was an honor to be in the presence of Kakashi and Yamato, yet they left a little while after ramen because they had to go fill out a report about the mission they came off of, so the four teens spent the rest of the afternoon together. Iva was excited for the friendship she had developed with Sakura, and found Sai's social innocence and desire to make friends hilarious and enjoyable.

"Well, we should be heading back now," Sakura said slowly.

"Yeah, I guess so," Iva gulped. To be honest, she was terrified of going back home. She loved both of her parents and everything, but there was no doubt that it would be incredibly awkward and her father would be embarrassed beyond belief.

"Do you want us to come along?" Naruto asked, sensing her hesitation.

"I appreciate that offer," Iva began, "But I think it would just be too uncomfortable—"

"I have an idea," Sai offered happily.

And so, Iva's mother and father opened the door to find four smiling (and hesitant) teenagers at their door around dinnertime. There was an awkward silence as everyone but Sai found themselves incredibly fascinated with the ground or some other object.

"Ano—here's some fruit!" Naruto began quickly, holding out a basket of apples and oranges that matched the amount of food that had been lost to the dirt when the cart was almost knocked over earlier.

Now her parents were even more embarrassed. "Arigato—Naruto," her father mumbled nervously as he took the basket.

"Wou—would you three like to come in for some tea? I just made some," her mother stammered.

"Sure!" Sai grinned with his fake smile, not at all detecting the awkwardness of the situation.

There was absolute silence as Iva's mother poured the tea while everyone sat around the table, and Iva could sense her father stealing furtive glances at her every so often, taking the slight swelling of her jaw into account.

"Look, Naruto, about earlier—" her father began.

"Oh, that's all right. You don't need to—" he started nervously.

"No, I do," he said sternly, then locked eyes with Naruto and became very serious. "M—my behavior earlier today was uncalled for. I realize that it was an accident, and like—Sai here said, there wasn't much damage done. I want you to know that I apologize and humbly ask for your forgiveness."

"And I do as well," Iva's mother said resoutely, placing her hand in her husband's lovingly.

Naruto was simply aghast and Iva was shocked. Neither youth could believe what they were hearing!

"I see now that I was too quick to judge, and that you have made some friends," he father continued, gesturing to Sakura and Sai. "I was so blinded by—by prejudice that it took my own daughter to take a shameful blow in order for me to realize this."

"You are your own person, and deserve respect just as much as anyone else," her mother added.

"Ar—arigato," Naruto stuttered, clearing taken back by the firm acceptance by the two adults. At his word the two relaxed considerably, smiles of relief flashing across their face.

"Well—we might have a mission tomorrow, so we need to leave," Sakura apologized, not sure how to exactly leave the situation.

"Oh, of course! I—I hope everything goes—well," Iva's father said awkwardly.

"We'll see you later, Iva!" her new friends called out as they left, and Iva waved to them frantically while her parents slightly bowed.

Once they were out of sight there was a nervous silence as Iva and her parents just stood in the doorway.

"Well, I guess I should go to bed as well," she finally said after a while.

"Iva!" her father called out, before enveloping her into a large hug, tears falling down his face. "I'm so sorry! I don't know how I could have ever acted like that, it was wrong of me—"

"Ano, it's fine . . . Sakura fixed it up for me—"

"What he means sweetie, is that he—that _we_ are ashamed of our behavior and hope that you will be able to forgive us."

Iva beamed. "Of course I do! It's just that—" she paused. "Can you tell me why you, and everyone else seems to hate Naruto? It's just not fair and no one will tell me."

"Well honey, I think that's up to Naruto to decide," her dad pointed out. "It's really stupid, actually, and anyone who feels that way is a fool."

"Like us," her mother smiled weakly.

"I just hope that others realize their mistake before it's too late. You are the one who brought our foolishness to light, and we are very grateful."

"Yeah well, the next time you need me to help you learn a lesson, do you think we could make it a lot less painful?" Iva teased, rubbing her jaw.

Her father looked slightly alarmed, but once he realized she was kidding, he chuckled and shooed her off to bed.

Iva couldn't stop grinning as she lay underneath her sheets, mulling over the day's events. _Well, Naruto, I promise to do whatever I can to convince as many people as possible that you aren't the demon they make you out to be._

* * *

**What do you think? I realize that many of you may have wanted Iva to find out about the Kyuubi, but honestly, not even all his shinobi friends know yet! I suppose he's going to tell her in the future, but their friendship needs to grow a little more. I know it grew a lot through what she just did for him, but something like that is something that one can only be told after a long friendship because it's extremely personal.**

**Who knows? I could write another chapter later on if I feel like it, so consider this story in "Active Complete" mode. **

**My next update will be Naruto and the Goblet of Fire!**


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